This invention relates in general to fiber-optic ring gyroscopes and more particularly to a low cost passive resonance ring gyroscope employing a broadband laser.
The use of a fiber optic loop or ring in either interferometer systems or passive resonance systems respectively for high resolution measurement of angular rotation rates is well known. These systems rely upon the quantitative determination of the Sagnac shift resulting from rotation of the ring. In the resonant systems narrow bandwidth laser beams are coupled to the fiber optic ring such that they travel around the ring in opposite directions. The difference in frequency of resonance for the two beams provides a measure of the Sagnac shift. A number of interferometer and resonant systems are described in the following references:
______________________________________ U.S. Pat. No. Issue Date ______________________________________ U.S. Pat. No. 4,274,742 June 23, 1981 U.S. Pat. No. 4,491,413 January 1, 1985 U.S. Pat. No. 4,661,964 April 28, 1987 U.S. Pat. No. 4,673,293 June 16, 1987 U.S. Pat. No. 4,702,600 October 27, 1987 ______________________________________